Halloween Place Card Holder Trio

Introduction: Halloween Place Card Holder Trio

Designed for Sculpey, www.sculpey.com by Swirly Designs, www.swirleydesigns.com Create these iconic Halloween characters holders for your next ghoulish gathering. Great for place cards, food identifiers, or display your favorite Halloween photos.

Step 2: Getting Started

Getting Started

Do not use unbaked clay on unprotected furniture or finished surfaces. Start with clean hands and work surface area. Good work surfaces include wax paper, metal baking sheet, or disposable foil. Knead clay until soft and smooth. For best results, clean your hands in between colors. Shape clay, pressing pieces together firmly. Bake on oven-proof glass or metal surface at 275°F (130°C) for 30 minutes per ¼" (6 mm) thickness. For best baking results, use an oven thermometer. DO NOT USE MICROWAVE OVEN. DO NOT EXCEED THE ABOVE TEMPERATURE OR RECOMMENDED BAKING TIME. Wash hands after use. Baking should be completed by an adult.

Begin by preheating oven to 275°F (130 °C). Test temperature with oven thermometer for perfectly cured clay. For best results, condition all clay by running it through the clay dedicated pasta machine several passes on the widest setting. Fold the clay in half after each pass and insert the fold side into the rollers first.

Step 3: Step 1 - Designing the Bases

Note:

The first two steps are the same for all three pieces you just need to switch out the colors.

Choose your vintage spool (you can use any size but for this project we used 1 ¼ size spools) Choose your color floss. Add some fabric glue to the spool and wrap your colored floss around. Let dry.

Step 4: Step 2 - Making the Wire Holder

Cut approx 6” piece of 20 gauge wire and wrap around the end of a paint brush or pencil 4-5 times. Slide off and twist bottom and cut approx ¾ down.

Step 5: Step 1 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Roll a 1” pumpkin shape form using remnants of clay to create the body.

Test the size by placing it on top of the your spool to make sure it is in proportion to the spool

Step 6: Step 2 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Outer part of pumpkin .Take a piece of Cadmium Yellow, Wasabi and Orange clay and run it through the clay conditioning machine on the #2 setting. Using the Super Slicer, cut various thicknesses of stripes out of the clay (make sure you have two of the same widths for each stripe you cut). Then stack two of the same color/same width together. Once you have your various stripes done and stacked two up of all three colors, lay down a pattern using the three colors approx 3” long. Make sure you’re able to fit the pattern into your clay conditioning machine. Use your acrylic roller to adhere your stripes together so you can pick them up as one piece.

Step 7: Step 3 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Run your stripes (vertically) into your conditioning machine on the #2 setting. After each time fold your clay bottom to top and run through the clay conditioning machine on the #2 setting again until it’s blended. Run one final time on the #3 setting.

Step 8: Step 4 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Lay your pumpkin body shape on top of your stripes and with super slicer cut a strip off large enough to cover the top and bottom side of your pumpkin. Wrap around sides and cut to make sure it lines up and burnish together. Then fold over top and bottom and burnish and smooth clay to create your pumpkin.

Step 9: Step 5 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Press your 6mm Style and Detail tool into the top center of your pumpkins head approx ¼ down. Add some Bake and Bond into the hole. Then roll a stem-like shape with a piece of wasabi clay and insert it into hole. Cut approx 3” piece of 20 gauge green wire and wrap around the end of a thin paintbrush 4-5 times. Slide off. Add Bake and Bond to one end and insert near the stem.

Step 10: Step 6 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Use your tools to create your pumpkins’ facial expression, pumpkin lines and texture. Use glow in the dark clay for the eyes, red clay for the nose and mouth. Insert your orange wire holder to the top of your pumpkin.

Step 11: Step 7 - Making the Multicolor Striped PUMPKIN HEAD

Take a small piece of orange clay and run through the clay conditioning machine on the #2 setting. Cut a 5/8 circle out of the clay and attach to the bottom of your pumpkin. This will raise your pumpkins head up enough from your spool to add some decorative yarn. Set aside on a ceramic tile.

Step 12: Step - Making the Scary Cat

Start with a 1” black piece of clay and roll and sculpt the cat’s head with your finger. Squish and press the center and then sculpt his pointy ears on the sides.

Test the size by placing it on top of the your spool to make sure it is in proportion to the spool

Step 13: Step 2 - Making the Scary Cat

Use your tools to create the cat’s facial expression. Use the end of a small wooden stamp to create ear holes. Then use a 2mm stylus tool to sculpt the eyes, nose and mouth. Use a clay knife to make the whiskers. Cut out two small tear drop shapes of glow-in-the-dark clay for the eyes, and a thin small snake for the teeth and then a small ball of Orange clay for the nose.

Step 14: Step 3 - Making the Scary Cat

Take a small piece of black clay and run through the clay conditioning machine on the #2 setting. Cut a ½” circle out of the clay and attach to the bottom of your pumpkin. This will raise the head up enough from your spool to add your decorative yarn.

Insert the black wire holder to the top of your Scary Cat. Set aside on a ceramic tile.

Step 15: Step 1 - Making the Howl Owl

Combine your Copper clay and Raw Sienna together to create a marbled effect. Then use a 1” ball of clay and sculpt the owl head with your fingers by squishing and pressing the center of the head and then making his pointy ears on the side.

Test the size by placing it on top of the spool to make sure it is in proportion to the spool.

Step 16: Step 2 - Making the Howl Owl

Take a small piece of Burnt Umber clay and run through the clay conditioning machine on the #4 setting. Cut out two 1/2 circles out of the clay for the center of the eyes.

Step 17: Step 3 - Making the Howl Owl

Run a piece of Gold clay through the clay conditioning machine on the #5 setting. Cut thin strips out with your jagged edge super slicer blade. Do the same with a piece of the marbled clay.

Take these strips and alternate layering them and adding the brown circle on top.

Attach to face of the owl. Repeat for second eye.

Step 18: Step 4 - Making the Howl Owl

Run the marbled mixed clay through the conditioning machine on the #5 setting

and use your super slicer to cut out a triangle shape for the top of the owl. Attach to owl face, with pointy end between the eyes. (It’s basically a house shape – square with triangle on top)

Step 19: Step 5 - Making the Howl Owl

Run Cadmium Yellow through the clay conditioning machine on the #4 setting and cut two ¼ circles out for the eyes. With the extra Yellow sculpt a beak. Cut a piece of toothpick, add Bake and Bond to the end and insert into the owl face then attached your beak. Add two small balls to the eyes of your owl with the glow in the dark clay. Use the clay tools to make texture to the owl.

Step 20: Step 6 - Making the Howl Owl

Take a small piece of mixed marbled clay and run through the clay conditioning machine on the #2 setting. Cut a ½ circle out of the clay and attach to the bottom of your owl. This will raise your owl head up enough from your spool to add your decorative yarn. Insert your brown wire holder to the top of your Howl Owl.

Step 21: Embellishing Your Pieces

• Paint eyes on the characters, give your pumpkin teeth with 3D paint, add a coat of glossy glaze and high light areas with glitter.

• Use a strong craft glue to glue your Halloween heads to their matching spools.

• Use fabric glue to attach the eye lash glitter yarn around the Halloween characters.